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Cruxite
Cruxite is a crystalline substance found in Homestuck that comes in numerous different colors. It is primarily found in the form of dowels used for alchemy; however, the artifacts used to facilitate a player's entry to the Medium are also composed of cruxite. __TOC__ Dowels Cruxite dowels are long cylinders extracted from the Cruxtruder, first seen . They can be used in conjunction with the Alchemiter to create special objects, and can be carved by the Totem Lathe to change what kind of item is created. A carved cruxite dowel was used to create a cruxite artifact for each of the kids. Its extraction released the Kernelsprite and began the countdown towards the meteor impact. Many dowels can be extracted, but only the first dowel releases the Kernelsprite and initiates the countdown. The color of the cruxite seen so far appoxitimately corresponds to a player's associated color: Gray for Karkat Vantas, mustard for Sollux Captor, and brown for Tavros Nitram. The colors have been swapped between most of the pre- and post-scratch kids in respect to their typing colors: cyan for John Egbert, blue for Jane Crocker, magenta for Rose Lalonde, lavender for Roxy Lalonde, vermilion for Dave Strider, red for Dirk Strider, bright green for Jade Harley, slightly brighter green for Jake English. Kanaya and Eridan are shown making a with black cruxite. This was most likely cruxite found in the veil and is unrelated to a specific player. Artifacts A cruxite artifact must be created by a Sburb player in order to enter the Medium in a game of Sburb. It is alchemized from the pre-punched card that is provided at the beginning of the game. Like their name suggests, they appear to be made of pure cruxite. Each artifact is unique to the player in question, and most of them have been "used" by breaking them in some fashion. A much larger version of this item is brought to earth by the meteor headed for the player's location. In the future, the Exiles will find and use these to contact their players. Artifacts are not alchemized like other items: Instead of the item simply appearing, the artifact is usually dropped by a larger item, which then disappears. Andrew, each cruxite item is symbolic of departure. Cruxite Apple.png|John's apple Cruxite Bottle.png|Rose's bottle Cruxite Egg.png|Dave's egg Cruxite Dog.png|Jade's piñata Cruxite Apple A mysterious cyan apple created by the Alchemiter while using a carved cruxite dowel. The apple came from a tree which said device created. Biting this apple saved John from being obliterated by a meteor by transporting him and his house into the Medium. The apple is not in John's inventory, so it is safe to assume it dissolved after it was used. The design of the Helipod Base is based on it (which is also why it's grown out of a tree). The Cruxite Apple's captcha code is (derived from the hole pattern on the card ). The apple symbolizes the loss of innocence, as it derives from the biblical tale of original sin; in which Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil (which is often described as an apple) against God's wishes. Adam and Eve were forced to depart from the Garden of Eden as a punishment. Knowledge and deep thought are said to have a link with air, which is John's associated classical element. Apples are harvested in Autumn, the windiest of all the seasons. Biting the apple involves the use of the mouth, an organ for breathing and speaking. As the Heir, John is destined to "inherit" things, or have things brought or thrust upon him without any say in the matter. The apple falls straight from the tree into John's arms without his input. Knowledge and intelligence itself can be said to be mankind's "inheritance", something it specially deserves and is granted by God. Cruxite Bottle A mysterious pinkish-purple bottle came from a cabinet created by the Alchemiter while using a carved cruxite dowel. The bottle was almost lost when it was knocked into the river by Zazzerpan's hand. Rose leapt over the waterfall to save it, before being rescued by Jaspersprite. Breaking this bottle saved Rose from being obliterated by a meteor by transporting her and her house into the Medium. The bottle is not in Rose's inventory, so it is safe to assume it dissolved or disappeared after it was used. The Skyship Base that appears in the future forms the "cork" on a larger bottle-shaped structure mostly buried underground where Rose's house once stood. The bottle symbolizes a leap of faith, trusting a friend. The fact that there is wine inside the bottle leads one to think of Rose's associated classical element being water and her mother's alleged alcoholism. Alcohol, and the drunkenness and incoherence it induces, have been heavily associated with the Void, Light's almost-certain opposite in comic. Thus breaking the bottle represents discarding or destroying incoherence and pursuing clarity. Wine bottles are broken when a new sea vessel is broken, and bottles are made of glass, which comes from sand at the beach, all connections to water. Wine bottles are classically used as vessels for messages, sent by stranded parties on islands or hobbled boats to seek aid. Breaking the bottle is often required to read the message and gain knowledge, tying the symbol into Rose's role as a Seer. The cabinet resembles Roxy's fetch modus. Rose's entry process ties into her Aspect, Light, being associated with information and knowledge: she had to go through quite the logistical process in order to enter. Cruxite Crow's Egg Dave's pre-punched card to facilitate his entrance to the Medium contains a cruxite egg-shaped item. Dave's card produces a large crow which lays a red-orange egg and then disappears. Dave's Crowsprite stole the Egg and took it to a nest made of shitty swords and soft puppet ass in an attempt to hatch it. Though he initially decided to let the Sprite try to hatch it, as time ran short Dave was forced to climb the tower to the nest. He was attacked by his Kernelsprite and knocked off the tower, but luckily his Bro was around to send Dave his rocketboard and slice the oncoming meteor in two. This outrageously awesome act bought Dave the precious few seconds he needed for the egg to heat up and crack, sending him into the Medium. The that Rose reads about is another cruxite artifact of this type. The item is related to the Eggy-Looking Base that has appeared in the Future. The crow's egg symbolizes a lesson in patience (which ties into his Aspect, Time), as Dave has to wait for the egg to hatch. An egg can also symbolize a barrier and protection, as well as overprotection. The egg hatching can mean finding independence, or coming out from someone else's shadow (similar to how Dave must become independent from his Bro). As a warrior class, a defender and a generally practical class or exploiter, themes of protection tie in to Dave's heroic title. Dave has to specifically fight off his kernelsprite to get at the egg, and all Knights seen in comic repress their feelings in some capacity, which need to be let out like a chick from an egg. The egg ties in to Dave's associated classical element of fire, as eggs need the warmth of their mother to hatch. Both the time and heat needed to do so directly reference Dave's land, the Land of Heat and Clockwork. Cruxite Dog Piñata A green piñata shaped like Becquerel was used for Jade's entry into the Medium. She was blindfolded when this item appeared and attempted to smack it with her rifle. When she did land a blow, the piñata seemed to propel her out of the tower, probably using first guardian powers, because it still has the shift animation. She eventually shot it through a portal created by Becsprite. The Cruxite Piñata's captcha code is (derived from the hole pattern on the card ). The dog piñata and its method of destruction symbolizes a shot in the dark, killing a friend for its own good, and/or the greater good. The pinata is the only entry artifact that resembles a living creature, and needs to have a solid metal object embedded in it to activate; living creatures are often described in creation mythology as animated earth or clay, sometimes with other objects buried within them like how metal is buried beneath the earth. All of this ties in to Jade's associated element of Earth. In Mayan culture, dogs symbolize both death and renewal, acting as guides in the underworld. This ties Bec's role as Guardian with burial in the earth. When piñatas are broken, candy and other treats fall to the earth. Piñatas are made out of paper mache, paper and glue, all materials derived from earthly sources (plants and animals). The piñata is a reference to the quinceñera, a celebration held in Latino cultures for girls on their 15th birthday. The quinceñera is a coming-of-age party. In this way, the piñata symbolizes Jade's need to mature in the game of Sburb, including accepting and moving beyond Becquerel's death, confronting her own fears and sadness in the form of Jadesprite, and eventually accepting her responsibility as the savior of the B1 kids' planets and denizens. The of Jade's entry process was the most spatially complicated of all of the kids', involving difficult coordination and ultimately input from the space-empowered Becquerel. All of this obviously ties in to her Heroic Aspect, Space. As a Witch, a class associated with complexity and control, Jade's challenge required the most careful arrangement of physical affairs. Cruxite Tree Jane's pre-punched card contained a tree, which means that the tree itself is the cruxite artifact. It is an oddity even by the standards of other Void session artifacts. Unlike the other cruxite artifacts, it was not produced by a bigger item, and Jane was confused as to how she was meant to interact with it. Given the lack of detail surrounding her entrance, it is possible that the AR used a walkthrough to set up the game, as Rose had, or perhaps (as a computer) just knew how the game worked, thus explaining Jane's unawareness. Apparently, Jane wasn't even meant to interact with the artifact, a feature possibly true of all Void entries. After a few moments, the tree simply vanished, and Jane was transported into the medium. Lacking the fruit that John's bore, the tree can be seen as symbolic of the entire void session, incapable of reproducing without outside intervention. Jane waited for the tree to do something, just as the four Nobles (herself, Roxy, Dirk and Jake) are required to wait in their session for the arrival of the Heroes before it can truly begin. Jane is a Maid, and Maids are a type of servant that often overlaps with waiters, butlers and similar vassals. Being a Maid of Life specifically, it is natural for Jane to wait for a plant to grow - Life is associated with flora. As the post-scratch children are all paradox clones of themselves, and as such have no biological parents, it perhaps fits that Jane's entry to the session is accompanied by a fruitless tree, essentially a parent without a child. A tree that produces no fruit can be said to be a symbol of exit, of departure from rather than to a location and from discontinuity of a cycle or journey. In this sense, Jane's tree opposes the shared symbolism of the pre-scratch kid's entry artifacts. It is theorized that the lack of fruit production by the tree is a direct consequence of Jane's kernelsprite not being prototyped before the entry. Cruxite Cherub This is Jake English's cruxite artifact. The totem matches the shape of Jane, John, and Jade's. Much like Jade's, his artifact is hanging from a tree in a piñata-like fashion. However, his appears to be hanging from a noose, similar in a way to 's effigies. The fact that it resembles a cherub is a tie between Jake and and reflects Aranea and Caliborn's belief and wishes for Jake to strike a blow against him. Interestingly, it is the first cruxite artifact shown with more than one color, bearing red cheek marks like those of Caliborn and . The hanged man is an obvious reference to death, causing Jake's entry artifact to align with Jane's in symbolizing exit. Trolls' Artifacts The trolls' cruxite artifacts were never shown during Hivebent. However, we know that they matched their typing color, as we saw cruxite dowels and cruxite totems of several trolls. From the shape of the exile bases, one could assume that Karkat's was a crabby-looking thing with six legs, while Kanaya's was the skull of a Mother Grub. This could suggest a connection to each troll players' Lusus/Guardian, and how they had to move on from their lusus's death. Another fact to support this theory would be Jade's artifact being shaped like Becquerel. However, Andrew Hussie stated that the trolls' artifacts were deliberately left to the reader's imagination, so this might not be indicative at all. Dead sessions No artifacts are dropped in dead sessions, as shown by Caliborn's entry in GAME OVER; the kernelsprite instead turns into a black hole, sucking the player's planet to their session. The lack of a departure symbol ties to Caliborn (and probably Alternate Calliope)'s early forced domination of the cherub body and not leaving his planet after entering the game. Trivia *The Salamanders of the Land of Wind and Shade think cruxite is very useless. *Jade, John, Jane, and Jake all had the same shape of cruxite artifact, which all produced trees. Whether this is significant, or whether Hussie simply became tired of making different shaped cruxite totems, is unknown. It could be indicative of Dirk and Roxy's artifacts; as their totems share the same shape, they may also have trees as their artifacts. **Jade, John, Jane, and Jake's cruxite artifacts' shape may also be a reference to their family tree, especially with John's apple representing his status as Jane's son. *Although the entry processes for Roxy and Dirk's houses were shown, neither appeared to have a cruxite artifact. Whether this is due to Squarewave and Sawtooth facilitating the entries remains unclear. Category:Homestuck inventory Category:Homestuck concepts Category:Phernalia Registry